By: Alex Mora
From a mural in New York City to presidential candidate Kamala Harris’s X feed, a borderline unbearable color of chartreuse has defined this summer.
Charli XCX’s “BRAT” album pays tribute to “party girl anthems”, brought unprecedented energy to the summer, and solidified her position as a main pop artist.
The “BRAT” album took over the internet and skyrocketed Charli XCX to commercial success by the simple yet effective album’s marketing.
The simple album cover, consisting of a bright green background and the word “brat” in black font, made promotional material easily recognizable and adaptable into many forms.
People began posting cars, store signs, clothes, food, and anything bright green they encountered and called it “brat”.
The Iconi brat logo (Photo credit: Printerval)
Due to the music’s unique production, which implemented auto-tuned vocals over loud, sharp, and energetic beats, many people who were not familiar with Charli XCX or her music style became fans.
As a result, the term “Brat Summer” was coined in honor of the album’s success and became a pop culture moment. Brat summer was not just a simple phrase, but a way of life, an aesthetic, and an attitude that fans took to the Internet and embraced in their own ways.
Brat summer is best described as having messy, sweaty, feral, and chaotic party-girl energy. With a touch of existential dread, in line with the album’s theme.
As Charli XCX says in a TikTok, a brat is “that girl who is a little messy and likes to party and maybe says some dumb things sometimes. Who feels herself but maybe also has a breakdown.”
Brat Summer was an “opportunity to live authentically, to live my truth,” said first-year Wright College student April Shaner. “To say screw it, I’m going to be a brat.”
One of the biggest successes in brat summer besides the music, was the “Apple dance”. The “Apple dance", originated by TikTok creator Kelley Heyer, followed the upbeat and fresh production of the song “Apple”.
Though Charli XCX had not previously gained commercial success on her own, she has always been a pillar in the queer community. The rave and party scene she pulls most of her inspiration from is heavily dominated by queer artists.
The Brat Summer phenomenon was not only felt in Internet culture, but it also unexpectedly became a political mobilizer. On July 21, Charli XCX posted on X stating “Kamala IS brat”, triggering a surge of online memes and support for presidential candidate Kamala Harris.
Video edits and remixes of “BRAT” songs with Harris’s phrases flooded the internet and made the presidential candidate become a sensation.
Harris’s team quickly jumped on the opportunity to appeal to young voters by embracing Brat Summer. Going as far as changing the theme of her HQ’s X – formerly known as Twitter – banner to the brat green.
Young voters are crucial to the current presidential race, and Harris’s embracing Brat Summer may have secured her the Gen Z vote. From the marketing campaigns, and the fresh ahead-of-the-curve music production, Brat Summer’s legacy will surely live on as an iconic moment in pop culture history.
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